I think I'm not "the lyrics fan", I really enjoy LC's music as well, although I don't know really much about music. But, I don't know, I really like Ten New Songs, even im musical sense, although I think it is maybe under-produced, something like that. We might agree about lack of live instruments, but I don't think songs itself are bad, quite contrary.
And I am really for remastering - I am first to think that Sony's cheap remasters of LC's LPs on "nice price" catalogue are catastrophical. But I think all albums must be remastered, not only some of them into Essential, and they must be normal - this existing remasters are bad, mostly without lyrics, without list of musicians, any kind of data, pictures, etc.
And I don't want to mention bonus tracks we deserve, like Misty Blue, abandoned Songs For Rebbeca, Everybody's Child, Do I Have To Dance All Night, Billy Sunday, etc.
Regards

I've not so long ago replaced my final vinyl with cd. If I can take my Mr. Cohen cds back to the shop and get them replaced for free then I wouold be in favour but if its just about forking out money I can't afford when I could be buying new music then no thankyou.

Hey folks, SACD or DVD format I think this new release in this new format (Essential "album") but i got just remastering album w/ no new song or something new so I called this CD release absolutly not worthed for Cohen fans, you can see my reply in this forum

15 albums of Bob Dylan will be release soon on SACDs by Sony Music. Here are the infos, taken from rec.music.dylan :

FYI:

SONY MUSIC ANNOUNCES NEW BOB DYLAN SUPER AUDIO CD (SACD) SERIES
January 10, 2003
LAS VEGAS (CES, Booth #N109), Jan. 10, 2003 -- Sony Music
Entertainment (SME) today announced it will be releasing a new series of
classic albums by Columbia Records artist Bob Dylan on hybrid Super Audio CD
(SACD) this Fall. The announcement was made by Jeff Jones, Senior Vice
President, Legacy Recordings during a special SACD reception sponsored by
Sony and Philips at the 2003 Consumer Electronics Show (CES).

The Bob Dylan titles mark the beginning of an ongoing program to
enhance and upgrade the sonic quality and packaging elements of the Dylan
catalog. These 15 titles are also the first Sony Music recordings to be
released on hybrid SACD and will be produced on a new hybrid disc
replication line that is scheduled to be launched in May, 2003 at Sony Disc
Manufacturing's U.S. flagship facility in Terre Haute, Indiana. The 15
titles comprise many iconic titles from Dylan's canon: Free Wheelin';
Another Side of Bob Dylan; Bringing It All Back Home; Highway 61 Revisited;
John Wesley Harding; Nashville Skyline; Blood On The Tracks; Desire; Slow
Train Coming; Infidels; Oh Mercy; Time Out Of Mind; Love and Theft; Royal
Albert Hall and Street Legal.

"The release of these classic Bob Dylan albums on hybrid SACD will
extend the benefits of this exciting format to a much wider audience,"
stated Jeff Jones. "Each of these Dylan titles will be reissued in stereo,
and they will be carefully remastered and reproduced to the highest quality
standards." The entire series of reissues will be remastered by Greg Calbi,
Senior Mastering Engineer at Sterling Sound in New York, whose credits
include John Lennon's Walls and Bridges and Bruce Springsteen's Born to Run
albums.

To date, Sony Music has released approximately 200 SACD titles
including nearly 60 in multichannel surround sound. During the first quarter
of this year, Sony Music will be releasing a variety of other stereo and
multichannel SACD titles including Aerosmith's Toys In The Attic; James
Taylor's Flag and Dad Loves His Work; and a new album by Macy Gray.

Still no mention of Leonard Cohen, but let's hope Sony will do (at least) some remastering work for his albums.

Apparently, all of Leonard Cohen's albums except that last two (Ten New Songs and Dear Heather) are analogue recordings, so would be ideal for SACD re-release, though I do think that all tracks should be remixed (if possible) to better suit SACD's dynamic rage and playback time. My hope is that the closing tracks on his first two albums will either fade out later or not at all (suprise suprise).

Personally, I am all for re-releasing any Cohen material in any format. Then it's all down to individual choice - buy it or don't. If Cohen material is available in the latest formats then younger generations will be more inclined to access it and/or buy it. That can only be a good thing. His material must keep up with the latest formats and developments to ensure it's longevity and shelf life. How many young people buy vinyl or cassette? It's all about CD's (and downloads) today. Maybe it will all be about SACD tomorrow. And Leonard will be right in there with the best of them. Onwards and upwards The Len!

On the 'word vs music' thing, it is a marriage of word AND music. Not words OR music. Leonard joined these words to music for a very good reason - It just works better. If not better, then differently. And that difference is key. That's the whole point. His intent is to communicate something else with the addition of music. His words are incredible. His ability to develop a tune to support and even enhance a lyric is also incredible. I know, preaching to the converted but what can I say, a rant is a rant.

It would help me understand if I knew what you mean by sound digital, even if I think you know. Ever encountered the three letter code that used to be quite common on CDs, AAD means that the original multitrack recording was analogue and prepared mix are analogue recordings. ADD means that the original multitrack recording is analogue, but the mixed down and edited mater is digital (which means only one generation of analogue recording), in other words, recorded analoguely and digitised after mixdown. and. If you have been listening to a CD copy, no doubt it would sound digital (at least to the untrained ear) because CD quality sound (16 bit sampled only 44,100 times per second), is still not analogue master tape quality, is it? Especially not low generation analogue tapes.

Myrtone wrote:It would help me understand if I knew what you mean by sound digital, even if I think you know. Ever encountered the three letter code that used to be quite common on CDs, AAD means that the original multitrack recording was analogue and prepared mix are analogue recordings. ADD means that the original multitrack recording is analogue, but the mixed down and edited mater is digital (which means only one generation of analogue recording), in other words, recorded analoguely and digitised after mixdown. and. If you have been listening to a CD copy, no doubt it would sound digital (at lest to the untrained ear) because CD quality sound (16 bit sampled only 44,100 times per second), is still not analogue master tape quality, is it? Especially not low generation analogue tapes.

Thanks for links. So "The Future" is "ADD"? Does in fact sound like it. Yes, I know all about three-letter recording codes. I love analog sound and always look at the back of a CD cover to see if there is a three-letter code. I have a whole collection of pictures of analog tape machines. I dream about starting my own all-analog recording studio one day.

By the way, I once saw a sealed copy of a Korean pressing of "The Future" on vinyl on Ebay. I tried to bid on it but the price went up too high.